Written for The Houses Competition
House Hufflepuff
Category: Themed (Love (Romantic) and/or Feeling loved (in any way))
Prompt: Delicate Hands
Word count: 2,563
Betas: Magi, Aya
One of Hannah's favourite things to do was watch Neville potter around in his garden. She loved watching him in his element, apparently just as much as he loved watching her in hers. The garden was his place of sanctuary and just watching him be calm made her calm. It happened to be one of the reasons she had been drawn to him, someone so calm was the perfect person to centre her when she grew anxious.
No one had known in her Hogwarts years, too skilled was she at hiding how much little things affected her. She had been more open when she had been younger but a multitude of people saying that the cause of her anxiety was so small that it was infinitesimal had taken its toll, and she had learned how to hide the signs that she was stressed or anxious.
Then Neville had come along and even though they had been in different Houses, they had grown close as they appeared to have found the same hiding places when things got bad. At first, they had silently given each other the space when they needed it, trading quiet smiles of understanding and comfort as they passed each other.
It had helped her, somehow, knowing that someone else required the quiet. Knowing that there was someone else who didn't thrive on being around other people or finding new challenges to face was wonderful. Yes, Hufflepuffs were known as very laid-back, casual, and friendly people to the rest of the school but even if they were just that, they would have come with their own challenges.
Hufflepuff wasn't full of those who were merely fun to be around. Hufflepuff was the home to many different types of people. As their Founder, Helga Hufflepuff, had said: she'd take the rest. That was exactly what had happened; anyone who wasn't quite enough Gryffindor, Slytherin or Ravenclaw to be in those Houses according to the Sorting Hat ended up in Hufflepuff with 'the rest'. Which meant that while the House of Hufflepuff was populated by those who were the best friends you could ever have, it was also home to the rejects who still held onto the other House attributes.
Such a mesh of personalities always hurt Hannah's head and she found that she could not deal with the raucous place for any prolonged amount of time or she would go insane trying to keep track of everything that was happening. As such, her school years were made up of being in the common room when she could stand it, escaping when she couldn't, and quiet moments with one Neville Longbottom.
She smiled now as she watched Neville continue with his work. She loved that man more than she had thought she was able to love another. They were the perfect match. Neville looked up at her and waved, smiling brilliantly. Hannah waved back, grinning just as much as her fiancé and soon-to-be husband. That man was her world now; he had found the way to calm the storm of her anxiety when it had developed into a tsunami and had provided the safe harbour she had so desperately needed.
Their home was calm. There was minimal clutter and Neville often had the essences of lavender and orange filling the air via a diffuser to keep an atmosphere of calm and welcome. The whole house was decorated in calm shades of brown and cream with the occasional obligatory House colour splashed about. Outside was completely Neville's domain that he maintained with pride and had turned from bare earth to a lush green garden.
Hannah's gardener had managed to create an oasis in their garden and Hannah would often find herself out there resting when she grew tired of inside or if she had had a very long day at work indoors and merely wished to soak up the outside. Neville would join her sometimes if he wasn't at his own job and sometimes he'd move about in her general vicinity tending to the plants, silently telling her that he was there if she needed him.
Watching him move about his element up close was beautiful. Normally, a man's hands couldn't be described as delicate, but Neville's definitely were. He handled all of his plants with the same delicate touch a glass blower might give a fragile blown creation. Hannah loved seeing those delicate hands caress the plants in his care and it made her realise just how lucky she was to have such a wonderful man love her.
Their wedding was in two days and Hannah couldn't be more excited for it. She was also slightly anxious as she generally was, but she had slowly gotten used to the always-present feeling of anxiety in the back of her mind. And now she had someone who both knew she suffered from omnipresent anxiety and could help sooth the storm. Hannah shook herself from her musings and realised that she had spent almost an hour just gazing blankly out into the garden and at Neville.
She knocked on the window in front of her and Neville looked up inquiringly. She mimed holding a cup and saucer, bringing up the imaginary cup to her lips in a questioning gesture. He nodded and she smiled before picking herself up from the chair she had been sitting in and making her way into the kitchen. A cup of tea was always good for providing calm and enjoying said cup of tea in the presence of such a person as Neville made it doubly calming.
Hannah hummed slightly as she waited for the kettle to boil, placing tea bags in the cups as she did so. The glow from getting married to the one she loved coming through strong. She was so glad that she had worked up the courage to propose to Neville, even if that day hadn't exactly gone as planned. Somehow, she had managed to lose the clearing she had hidden the engagement ring in and then gotten lost herself in the woods that she had planned to wander in a seemingly aimless direction with Neville until they 'happened' upon the small clearing she had chosen.
The start of that day hadn't been great, but she could confidently say that the end of it was one of the best she had ever had. Neville had barely waited until Hannah had actually gotten out the words she wanted to say to him before swooping her up in his arms and twirling them around whilst eagerly agreeing to her proposal.
She found herself grinning goofily as the memory resurfaced and almost jumped when the kettle started whistling loudly. Rubbing her head, Hannah poured out the water in measured seconds before dunking the tea bags twelve times and fetching the milk to pour in slowly until the tea took on the desired colour. Then she removed the bags, dropped them in the trash, and picked up the cups before walking outside.
Neville put down the secateurs he had been using and gave her a peck on the lips before taking the offered tea cup. "Thanks, Han."
Hannah smiled, "Any time. Tea is, after all, the ultimate cure for anything and everything."
They laughed at the reference to their fifth year where they would share an enormous teapot given to them by the Hogwarts House Elves after either one of them had had a detention with Umbridge. They had joked that with the sheer amount of tea they drank it would surely heal the wounds caused by the quill Umbridge had made them use to write out lines. Thus, tea had become the ultimate healer. When all else failed, they turned to a good cup of tea.
The rest of the afternoon was spent with the both of them in the garden. Hannah lay on the comfortable bench enjoying the rare sunshine and Neville picked up his secateurs once more, the two of them basking in the close presence of the other.
The wedding of one Neville Longbottom to a Hannah Abbott was eagerly awaited by all their friends and family and especially themselves. It was currently the night before the wedding and Hannah was an absolute wreck. She knew Neville loved her and she loved him but that wasn't what concerned her. That was a fact set in stone. No, what concerned her and sent her into spirals of growing anxiety was everything else.
What if the caterers didn't make enough food? What if there were too many guests and not enough chairs? What if the wedding rings got lost? What if, what if, what if. So many things whirled through her brain and she was unconsciously rubbing her head every few seconds along with constantly tapping whatever surface her fingers rested on.
Susan Bones was with her, trying to keep her as calm as she could and plying her with many cups of tea that went cold as Hannah simply held them for the warmth or inhaled the aroma and never actually drank anything. She felt as though she would throw up if she tried to ingest something, even the miracle cure that was tea.
Susan was used to Hannah's anxiety though, so she knew why Hannah was acting as she was. The fellow Hufflepuff didn't try to tell Hannah to stop worrying as she knew that being told that would only cause Hannah to start worrying about not worrying and would spiral her even further into the anxious ball she tried to keep locked inside of her. Instead, Susan just sat with her, actually drinking the tea she made for herself and chatted on about inconsequential things to provide a background hum to help drag Hannah from her own mind.
Many nights had been spent like this in their Hogwarts years when Hannah had had enough of everyone else in Hufflepuff and yet wanted the kind of talking that Neville couldn't provide her: girl talk. The two of them had become fast friends within the first week of their first year and that friendship hadn't wavered after graduation. Susan Bones had also managed to do what few others had achieved: she had seen through Hannah's mask of excitable happiness and found the real Hannah Abbott – anxiety ball extraordinaire.
A glowing cat ran into the room through the closed door and stopped at Hannah's side. She smiled down at it and relaxed a little when the soothing presence of Neville's patronus rubbed against her side. Susan grinned at the sight. She knew that Neville was the perfect man for Hannah and she the perfect woman for him. The smitten looks they gave when confronted with something adorable their partner had done said it all.
"Come on, Hannah, let's get some sleep."
Hannah looked up from the glowing cat and nodded, finally taking a gulp of the lukewarm tea in front of her and standing up to get ready for bed and the next day. Susan waved off the soon-to-be-bride when she tried to help with the dishes. No way would she allow her stressed out and probably tired friend to stay up a moment longer than she needed to.
Hannah took a deep breath. She was standing in front of the door that led to where Neville was waiting for her with all their friends surrounding him. This was it: she would be married to the love of her life in a few moments and she couldn't wait.
The music started and the door slowly opened, revealing her to the room inside and the room to her. Hannah was sure it was wonderful but she couldn't tear her eyes away from the man waiting for her. He was gazing back at her – equally as inattentive to the rest of the world as she was. Unconsciously stepping forward when her cue was given, Hannah made her way up the aisle to meet Neville.
When she reached him, those delicate hands that treated his plants with such love came up and grasped onto hers. They smiled at each other, basking in the open love shared between them and the reason that they had come here today.
The caterers had made enough food, there were enough chairs for all of the guests, and the two weddings rings were now on separate fingers. The wedding had gone off without a hitch, except for the two people that were getting hitched, of course. It was now the reception and Hannah and Neville were making the rounds around the people they invited to thank them for coming and accept congratulations. They hadn't separated since they had met up at the altar and were both beaming widely.
Susan Bones watched her best friend from the sidelines and smiled happily at the incandescent look on Hannah's face. When they had been at Hogwarts, Susan had wondered if her friend would ever find anyone that would accept Hannah for who she was, anxious meltdowns and all. In the past, when the Hufflepuff had found herself the centre of attention as she was now, it would have taken all of her energy to maintain a calm expression. After she had escaped from the attention, Hannah would often need the next few days away from other people to recover. Hannah wasn't looking at all stressed at the moment and Susan thought that Neville might be contributing to that fact.
"They're cute together, aren't they?" Susan jumped at the sudden voice next to her and looked to the left to see who had spoken.
Blaise Zabini stood there – he had been invited due to the tentative friendship that had been formed during the year that Death Eaters had run the school and Blaise had helped protect the younger years and other Houses as much as he could. Susan nodded in agreement to his statement.
"They do. They're perfect for each other."
There was a hum in response and she saw from the corner of her eye Blaise settling down on the wall next to her. It would appear that she had company now but that was alright with her. She had nothing against the Slytherin and didn't mind standing with him in silence as they both watched the happy couple wander the room they had hired for the wedding reception.
A few minutes later, the dancing part of the reception started and Hannah and Neville made their way onto the dance floor to have their first dance as a married couple. When that was finished, Blaise startled Susan by shifting off the wall and offering her his hand.
"Shall we dance?"
Susan stared at him for a few seconds before giving him a small smile and accepting the proffered hand. Blaise whirled her out onto the dance floor and they joined Hannah and Neville. Hannah grinned at Susan when she saw her dance partner and wiggled her eyebrows at the other girl. Susan laughed and tipped her head in consideration of the idea. Perhaps.
It couldn't hurt to see where a relationship with Blaise might lead. The man may not have the delicate hands that Neville had according to a very tired or drunk Hannah who waxed poetically about them, but Susan was sure that the slightly rougher hands would suit her just fine. They would be able to scratch all kinds of itches that needed to be dealt with.